


And At The End Of It All, We Made Each Other Better

by Fallenstar92



Series: We'll Make It Out Alive [4]
Category: Shameless (US)
Genre: Bipolar Disorder, Bipolar Ian Gallagher, Cute Kids, Domestic Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich, Endgame Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Growing Up, M/M, Married Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich, Mental Health Issues, Mickey Milkovich Uses Actual Words, Parents Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich, Post Mpreg, Protective Mickey Milkovich, Time Skips
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:42:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 13,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24694696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fallenstar92/pseuds/Fallenstar92
Summary: They bring out the worst in each other, sometimes, but-more often than not-they bring out the very best.Following the events of "Holding On And Letting Go" with Ian, Mickey, and their family.
Relationships: Debbie Gallagher/Sandy Milkovich, Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich, Lip Gallagher/Mandy Milkovich
Series: We'll Make It Out Alive [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/741051
Comments: 33
Kudos: 113





	1. Middle School And Emotional Constipation

_**One Year Later** _

Ian hated this; hated that his chubby-cheeked, bright eyed little Chipmunk was starting Middle School, today. He wanted his baby to stay a baby for just a little longer, but he knew he couldn't stop time. Right now, he couldn't focus on that; he was too busy trying not to laugh as Max tried to tame his wild curls in the bathroom mirror. "Pop! How do you do your hair?" Max asked with a groan, finally giving up on his attempt to style his hair the way both Mickey and Ian wore theirs.

"Here, I'll get it, today, and you just watch what I do." Ian offered, stepping into the bathroom and almost instantly getting Max's hair perfectly gelled back and stylishly rumpled. "Got it?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Pop." Ian also hated that; hated that Max had started calling him "Pop" instead of "Papa." He understood why Mickey had looked so heartbroken the day Max had switched from calling him "Daddy" to "Dad" now that it happened to him.

"Welcome, kiddo." Ian said, kissing Max's cheek before exiting the bathroom to see how far Mickey had gotten towards getting Harlow ready for school. "Need some help?" Ian asked, watching Mickey effortlessly braid Harlow's long, copper hair as the girl played with the skirt on her pink and green floral sundress.

"No, she's good. Max almost ready?" Mickey asked, patting Harlow's shoulder to let her know he was done.

"Yeah, he's about ready. I'm gonna help Key get dressed for daycare." Ian called out before dashing off the get his youngest child ready for a day at daycare. Even if his other kids seemed like they were growing a year every time he blinked, Cian was still practically a baby, and he was going to hold onto these moments as longs as he could.

"She's just... Oh my God!" Debbie groaned, causing Ian to roll his eyes. He knew his sister was bisexual-and he was proud of her for finally feeling brave enough to come out-but he was getting sick of hearing about how perfect Sandy Milkovich was. Had this been what he sounded like when he'd been looking for Mickey? Had he been this annoying about it?

"Just talk to her." Ian said around a mouthful of his chicken taco he was eating for lunch. He was starting to regret asking Debbie to meet him for lunch, though; she hadn't stopped talking about Sandy the entire time they'd been here. "Mandy and Mickey both told you she was into you."

"How the Hell do you tell someone that?!" Debbie exclaimed, causing an old man a few tables over to glare at them.

"Just tell her? How the Hell should I know? Only person I've dated since I was fifteen is my husband." Ian said, watching a smile spread across Debbie's face as she read a text he assumed came from Sandy. "Hey, Sandy!" Ian shouted, snatching Debbie's phone when she turned to look for the Milkovich woman. ""Yeah, it was stupid, but at least you're fuckin' hot." And you don't think she's into you, because..."

"Shut up." Debbie muttered, stealing her phone back as she dug into her salad and Ian laughed his ass off.

"Was Max nervous, this morning?" Fiona asked as she "helped" Mickey get burgers on the grill, sipping her beer while the man worked on dinner.

"Not as nervous as I thought he'd be; only issue was he was worried about findin' all of his classes before he was late." Mickey said, glancing into the kitchen where Max and Harlow were doing their homework. "He's grown up a lot since his first day of preschool."

"Well yeah; he's almost a teenager, now, sweetie." Fiona said, smiling as she saw Max lean over to help his sister with part of her homework. "Think Sandy'll finally ask Debbie out so she stops bitchin' about her?"

"She likes watchin' Debbie squirm." Mickey replied with a shrug. "Mandy told her if she don't ask Debbie, soon, she's doin' it for her." Mickey chuckled, remembering his sister repeatedly hitting Sandy with one of Mikayla's teething rings and telling her to stop being an asshole.

"Looks like the lovebirds just arrived." Fiona cooed, playfully swatting Mickey's ass before freezing in place, watching with wide eyes as Sany pulled Debbie to her and into a passionate, hungry kiss.

"Guess she listened to Mandy." Mickey commented, passing steering Cian away from the grill as the toddler ran around with Penguin, both making high-pitched, happy noises.

"Guess she isn't as emotionally constipated as you used to be." Fiona joked, just happy that her family-the Milkoviches included-were all happy with nothing standing in their way, for the first time, ever.


	2. Loose Teeth And Heartbreaks

_**One Year Later** _

It doesn't even seem possible, but Cian-their sweet, funny little guy-is starting Preschool, today. Mickey can still remember the first time he held this kid, and now? He's going to his first day of school, with no fear present as he stands impatiently at the front door, waiting to start his day. "Key, you gotta wear shoes to school." Mickey remarks, spotting the pair of _Toy Story_ socks on Cian's feet.

"But shoes take too long and I wanna go to school, Daddy!" Cian exclaimed, aiming his big, bright green eyes and a dimpled smile at Mickey in hopes of getting his way.

"Still gotta wear 'em. You wanna play outside at recess, right?" Cian eagerly nodded when Mickey asked him this, having heard how fun Recess was from his older sister. "Then you gotta wear shoes."

"Dad, Pop, Hannah's Dad's here to pick me up! I'll see you after school!" Max called out, dashing out the front door before either of his parents could respond. Max's first girlfriend-Hannah Jones-was a nice enough girl, and her parents seemed nice, but-to Mickey, at least-Max was too young to date. It didn't help that Max spent every moment he could out of the house with Hannah, making it nearly impossible for Mickey and Ian to even _see_ their eldest child.

"Yeah, we love you, too." Ian mumbled, stepping out of the kitchen with Harlow, Hyde, Jake, and Penguin hot on his heels.

"Why does Max wanna be around Hannah all the time? Her laugh is really annoying." Harlow said, handing Cian his lunchbox. Harlow made it no secret she didn't like Hannah; she missed her big brother, and Hannah was-in Harlow's mind-completely to blame for Max never being around when Harlow needed him.

"Well, because he likes her." Ian said, looking to his husband for help. How the Hell were they supposed to explain to their daughter that her brother was now a teenager and wasn't going to play with his seven-year-old sister and five-year-old brother? How do you tell your child their sibling is too old to be their best friend, now?

"That's stupid." Harlow muttered, tying her shoes and marching out the door without another word. Mickey and Ian exchanged confused looks, but simply shrugged it off and went their separate ways, Ian following Harlow out with Cian beside him as Mickey let the dogs out into the backyard before cleaning up the mess left behind from his children's breakfast and leaving for work.

Hannah wanted to walk home from school, so Max sent his Dad a text telling him that he'd go to the elementary school and wait with his brother and sister since Hannah's house was next door to the elementary school. "Isn't that your sister?" Hannah asked, pointing at where Harlow pushed Cian on a swing as two of Hannah's friends-Millie and Christine-pulled on the twin braids in her hair, shoved her, and stomped on her toes.

"Hey!" Max shouted as Harlow finally became sick of having her head tugged around, being shoved, and her shoes getting scuffed up. Max was barely through the gates before his sister kicked Millie in the crotch, helped Cian off the swing, and slapped Christine. Max knew Harlow; he knew she wasn't done, yet, so he ran over to stop the seven-year-old ball of rage before she got herself in any more trouble. "What the Hell, guys?! That's my sister!" Max yelled, looking around for a teacher, basically just wondering why they hadn't stopped this.

"What's wrong with your weird sister? She kicked Millie!" Hannah shouted, causing Harlow to look down at Cian. Was this why Harlow kept saying she didn't like Hannah? Did Hannah pick on his little sister when he wasn't looking?

"Nothing's wrong with my sister! Millie's a damn creep and picks on second graders!" Max shouted, subconsciously smoothing Harlow's hair back into place.

"Come on, Max, they didn't _hurt_ her; she kicked them and slapped them!" Hannah shouted, placing her hands on her hips as Cian walked over to the fence, looking at the small, yellow daisies.

"They're thirteen and Harlow's only seven!" Max shouted, again, feeling his heart shatter as he came to a sudden realization; Hannah put on such a good act about being the "nice girl" but she was just as mean as Millie and Christine. And to beat it all? His little sister was getting the worst end of it. "She's my family, and my parents taught us that family has each other's back. So, I've got Harlow's back."

"What does that mean?" Hannah demanded, narrowing her pretty brown eyes as she looked at her boyfriend, almost daring him to stick to his guns.

"It means I'm breaking up with you. And you're gonna leave Harlow alone." Max said, challenging the three girls to go against his instructions. He knew how to look intimidating-he was enough like his Dad to pull a "killer face" as his Pop called it-and he knew they wouldn't dare try him when Breelynn could easily kick their asses and she loved her best friend's little sister as much as he did. Hannah quickly lead her friends away, all three girls tossing their dyed blonde hair over their shoulders as they walked.

"Here, LowLow." Cian said, handing his sister a daisy chain crown he'd managed to make during the argument.

"Thanks, Key! I love it!" Harlow sniffed, offering her brother a watery smile.

"My tooth is movin', Max." Cian said, showing Max how his front tooth wiggled in his mouth as Mickey's car came into view.

"Wanna tell me why I just got a call from Millie Smith's Mom sayin' Harlow kicked her in the crotch?" Ian asked his son, looking into the bedroom Max and Cian shared shortly after getting off the phone with Carly Smith.

"She was picking on Harlow and Harlow got sick of it." Max replied with a shrug, not looking up from the book in his hands.

"Did you know this was goin' on before today?" Ian asked, ready to lecture his son about the importance of family if he had-knowingly-allowed someone to torment his sister just because they were friends with his girlfriend. At that question, Max finally looked up, his bright blue eyes wide behind the lenses of his glasses.

"What? No! I... Okay, so I was walkin' Hannah home, and she asked if that was my sister. So I looked at where she was pointing, and I saw Millie and Christine Kline. They were pullin' Harlow's hair, pushing her, and stomping on her toes. I yelled, but before I could even stop them Harlow kicked Millie and slapped Christine. Hannah was pissed at me, and... And I realized Hannah was doin' it, too.

"So, I broke up with her. But I swear, I had no idea until today, Pop." Max swore, looking over at Cian's bed, watching the boy as he watched a movie on his tablet. "You and Dad taught us better than that."

"Glad to hear it." Ian said, smiling in pride at his son's words. "Time to go to sleep, little Mouse." Ian said, taking Cian's headphones off and kissing the boy's forehead. "Night, Key."

"Night, Papa." Cian yawned, snuggling closer to Penguin as he closed his eyes.

"Fifteen minutes, then lights out. Night, Max." Ian said, pressing a kiss to the boy's temple.

"Night Pop... Hey Pop?" Max calls as Ian makes his way to the door.

"Yeah, kid?" Ian responded, turning around to face his son.

"Even if they did something bad... Does it always hurt when you break up with someone?" Max asked, suddenly looking much older than his thirteen years.

"I think it hurts when you're a good person and you see that someone else isn't." Ian replied, feeling the comforting presence of his husband as Mickey came into the room, kissed Cian's cheek as the boy slept, and sat on the edge of Max's bed.

"Harlow told me what you did." Mickey said, brushing Max's hair away from the boy's face. "She was startin' to think you didn't have time for her, anymore. So thanks, kid."

"I love Harlow and Cian. Even if I'm too old to play with them, all the time, it doesn't mean I don't love them." Max said, glancing at his brother's sleeping form as Mickey helped Hyde onto Max's bed; Hyde was getting older, and couldn't jump as well as he could a few years ago.

"We know. Now, get some sleep, kid." Mickey said, allowing Max to fall against his chest and hug him. "Love you, Chipmunk."

"Love you." Max said with a yawn, moving to lay down as Mickey joined Ian in the doorway, watching Hyde curl himself against Max's side before heading down to their own bedroom. For the night, knowing that-even though he was hurt-they were raising a good kid, who cared more about his siblings than a cute girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave me some comments to let me know what you thought of this chapter. Stay safe and be kind to one another. Much love!


	3. First Dances And Best Friends

_**One Year Later** _

"Daddy, can Annie come over after school, tomorrow?" Cian asked Mickey as he helped his father bath Penguin, who had ran outside-darting between Ian's feet as he walked in after work-to roll in the mud created by Harlow planting the flower she had started for her science class. Cian-despite being very kind and having a wonderful personality-had a hard time making friends. Mickey hated that people didn't seem to understand how amazing Cian was, but he was glad the little boy had found a good friend in a little girl named Annie Long, and she was always right by Cian's side when the two of them were in school.

"Yeah, Key. I'll call her Moms when we're done, here." Mickey agreed, knowing that Annie's parents-Rhonda and Dianna Long-would be happy to let Annie come spend some time with Cian. When Mickey and Ian had first met Cian's friend and her parents, they were a little shocked when Rhonda-Annie's biological mother-had pulled them into a tight hug, thanking them for raising such a wonderful little boy, who didn't seem at all bothered by Annie's mimicking his behaviors; who wasn't phased by Annie being on the Autism spectrum.

"Cool! We can play with Penguin and play Mario Kart!" Can cheered, rubbing a towel over Penguin's wet fur.

"Remember not to get too loud." Mickey reminded Cian, though he knew Cian never did; he knew loud noises bothered Annie, so he was unusually soft spoken and gentle around the other child. Cian nodded, but just continued to meticulously dry his dog's fur.

"Pop? How do you ask someone to a dance?" Max asked, watching Ian as the redhead moved around the kitchen, preparing dinner as Harlow finished her math homework at the table.

"I have no idea, kid." Ian said, looking up from the chicken and bacon Macaroni and cheese he'd just removed from the oven, sprinkling chives on top of the dish without looking away from his son. "I never went to school dances."

"Ever? But you and Dad started dating in High School, right?" Max asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he watched his father retrieve plates, forks, and glasses from the cabinets.

"Yeah, but you remember what we told you about Terry?" Ian asked, receiving a sad nod from Max in return. "Well, he would've never let your Dad go to a dance with a guy, so... Here we are." Ian passed Max the stack of plates and forks. "Set the table, for me. Ladybug, put your homework up and go wash your hands."

"Why don't you get her some flowers?" Harlow suggested as she slid her notebook and textbook back into her backpack. "Breelynn likes Lillies."

"You're askin' Breelynn?" Ian asked, a little shocked that he didn't know his son planned on asking his best friend to his first high school dance.

"Yeah... She's beautiful and she's the coolest girl I've ever met." Max said with a dark blush on his cheeks.

"We'll get her some flowers." Mickey said, entering the kitchen with Cian and Penguin beside him. "So, when were you gonna tell us you wanna ask Bree out?" Mickey asked, smirking at his son's red cheeks.

"Harlow was supposed to keep her mouth shut." Max muttered, bitterly.

"Yeah, we both know that ain't gonna happen, kid." Mickey scoffed, watching his daughter gasp and place her hands on her hips.

"I can keep a secret!" Harlow shouted, making Ian and Cian both laugh from their spots at the table. "I can! You're all mean." Harlow mumbled, sitting down with the rest of her family to dig into her dinner.

"Think Max found his Mickey?" Ian asked his husband layer that night, his fingertips dancing over Mickey's still sweat-drenched, bare skin.

"You kiddin' me? Bree's a fuckin' goofball; she's his Ian." Mickey joked, pressing a kiss to the Eagle tattoo on Ian's ribs.

"So she's cute and loveable and Max is adorably grumpy?" Ian asked, earning a smack to his bare stomach from his husband. "Ouch! I hope Bree's _not_ his Mickey, now; Mickey's are fuckin' terrors!" Ian laughed, quickly moving away from his husband as Mickey tried to slap him, again. "You're supposed to love me, asshole."

"I do. That's why I put up with you're annoying ass." Mickey joked, leaning in to kiss Ian. "Now let me fuckin' sleep."

"Yes, my love." Ian sighed, dreamily, quickly pulling Mickey closer to him, listening closely as Mickey's breathing evened out and the man started to snore, softly.


	4. Attack And Pain

_**One Year Later** _

Cian was still a pretty carefree child; he enjoyed spending his time outside, sitting beside the rose bushes with all three dogs around him as he played with his toy cars. This was how Cian spent most of his time, realizing from several years of being friends with Annie that he rather enjoyed the quiet, and could easily occupy himself without loud noises. That was what Cian was doing when he heard Jake growling, Penguin's hair stood on ends as he jumped in front of Cian, and Hyde started to bark. Cian wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew it couldn't be good if all three dogs were so on edge. Cian began to quickly clean up his toys-his parents didn't like when he left them outside-but before he could get into the house, he heard a deeper, louder growl than the ones that belonged to Jake. Cian's head snapped to the side, only to see a large, ugly, scared up dog standing less than a foot in front of him.

"Daddy, Papa!" Cian yelled, seeing the dog jump at Jake, who-despite being smaller than this new dog-was much faster, easily dodging this larger dog's attacks while getting his own in, giving Penguin, Hyde, and Cian a chance to run towards the back door. That is, until the other dog ran after Cian, sinking his teeth into the child's arm with a vicious snap of his jaw. "Help me!" Cian cried out, seeing blood spilling down his arm right before Jake knocked the larger dog off of him, pinning it to the ground and bitting down just as hard as this dog had on Cian's arm and Cian was yanked off the ground.

"Oh God, Cian! Are you okay, baby?" Ian asked his son, looking down at the open gash on his arm. "Mick! Get him to the hospital, I'll get Jake!" Cian was passed into Mickey's arms, being rushed through the house and out the front door before he could even process what had happened. Why did that dog bite him? He never even told Penguin not to chew on his shoes, so why would a dog hurt him?

Ian was a strong guy-he worked out, as often as he could and his job involved lifting people, all day-so pulling the two dogs apart was easier than it may have been for other people. He quickly got them separated and held the strange dog back, yelling for Jake to go inside before he began to back away from the angry dog. A man-roughly Ian's age with a leash in his hands-suddenly appeared in his yard. "Donny! There you are!" The man shouted, running to the bloody dog. "What did you do to my dog?!" He demanded, glaring at Ian.

"Me? Nothing! He attacked my son and my dog got him off of him!" Ian shouted, glaring right back at him, just now noticing that he'd been bitten by the dog, as well, when he saw bruise forming on his forearm, accompanied by a small trickle of blood.

"He's bleeding!" He shouted, bitterly.

"So am I, my son, and my dog." Ian replied, coldly. "Why the fuck is he in my yard?" Ian questioned, trying to figure out how the man and his dog had gotten into his fenced in yard, before remembering the storm, two days ago, knocking down a section of fence. He hadn't worried-knowing Hyde, Jake, and Penguin wouldn't run off-but now he felt guilty for it.

"I'm calling the fuckin' cops! You and your dog attacked my dog, unprovoked!" The man threatened.

"Unprovoked? He attacked my seven-year-old; he's on his way to the hospital to get his arm stitched up!" Ian shouted back. "You know what, call 'em! I'll fuckin' tell them about you lettin' an aggressive dog run loose, attack a kid, and didn't even bother comin' after him until it was all over!" Ian was fucking livid, but he wanted to laugh as the dumbass called the police.

Mickey allowed Cian to squeeze his hand the whole time his arm was stitched up-he ended up needing six stitches on both sides-and got the kid a milkshake on the way home to help keep him calm as they got close to the house. It worked, but Mickey felt fucking sick to his stomach as he saw police cars outside their house. "Come on, bud." Mickey said, helping Cian out of the car and walking over to Debbie, Sandy, Max, and Harlow, all gathered outside the house. "What's goin' on? Is Ian okay?!" Mickey demanded, hoping that dog hadn't hurt Ian.

"He's fine; asshole who owns the dog called the cops, tryin' to say Ian and Jake attacked his dog." Sandy said, oddly calm despite what she'd just said.

"What the fuck? The dog ripped Cian's arm open!" Mickey yelled, earning the attention of a police officer. "Sorry, but this is bullshit; our kid was in the backyard and that dog got in, tried to attack our German Shepherd, chased my son down, and tore his arm open. He didn't let go until our dog knocked him off the kid." Mickey said, picking Cian up as the kid tensed at his side, seeing the dog being taken out of the yard.

"Yeah, they figured that out when we got here and the dog tried to attack a cop." Debbie said, leaning her head on her girlfriend's shoulder. "Jake wasn't happy when the EMTs had to check out Ian's arm."

"What happened to Ian's arm?" Mickey asked, worried that Ian was going to have the same injury as Cian.

"The dog bit Pop; he didn't get as good of a grip on his arm, though." Max said, checking his brother's arm. "Gonna have a cool scar, Mousy."

"Did... Did I do something wrong?" Cian asked, tears in his wide, green eyes. "I swear, I wasn't mean to him; I like dogs." Cian told the officer, furiously wiping his eyes.

"No, no, you didn't do nothin' wrong, little man; that dog was just really mean." The Animal Control officer said, seeing the distressed child. "He's not as good of a dog as your dogs."

"He don't got Rabies or nothin', does he?" Mickey asked the Animal Control officer, wondering if anything that caused that dog to attack would make Jake sick.

"No, just aggressive. That German Shepherd of yours tried to protect just about everyone from that dog." The other man-Dean, his name tag read-praised.

"My dog's okay, right? Jake's mine." Harlow explained, reaching out for her Aunt's free hand, already expexting the worst.

"He's just fine, little lady." Dean assured Harlow. "He's a real hero; your dad said he saved your little brother, here."

"Hey! How's the arm, feelin', Key?" Ian asked as he ran out of the house, snatching his youngest son away from his husband and holding him close to his chest.

"It hurts... Can me and Penguin sleep with you and Daddy, tonight?" Cian asked, looking up at Ian with those big, beautiful green eyes.

"Yeah, little guy." Ian replied, pressing a kiss to Cian's head, just glad his little Mouse was-for the most part-okay. Not like him or Mickey would want Cian away from them, tonight, anyway.


	5. Scars And Protection

_**One Year Later** _

The attack from the vicious dog in his backyard had left hideous, jagged scars on both sides of Cian's arm. Mickey and Ian both tried to make their youngest son feel better about the disfiguring marks left behind, but-a year later-Cian still insisted on hiding his right arm any time he had to leave the house, even when he was in physical therapy-still trying to regain full grip strength in his right hand after the dog tore muscles in his forearm-because the scars were so ugly. "Like this." Cian said, sweetly, gently showing Annie how to finish her Thanksgiving picture frame for her Moms.

"Like this." Annie repeated, copying Cian's actions, to the T.

"Thank you, Cian." Misses Diana Poole said, smiling at the sweet display as Annie returned the favor by squeezing the bottle of glue for Cian. The two children were nearly inseparable, and Annie's personal aide often had to turn to Cian when Annie would become distressed after seeing that Annie usually calmed down when Cian would sit beside her and talk about his dog, Penguin.

"Hey, Cian?" Julia-a young, snobby brunette girl who usually ignored Cian and Annie-called out, walking over to Cian's desk.

"Yeah?" Cian was rather shy, Diana had noticed-even if he was an incredibly sweet, compassionate child who would do anything for anyone-and it took him a few seconds to meet Julia's eyes.

"Why does your arm look like that?" Julia asked with a laugh, pointing to the small patch of scared flesh that was visible, only due to Cian rolling his sleeves up to avoid getting paint on his sweatshirt. "It's ugly."

"I..." Cian rasped, quickly looking away from Julia and looking down at the scars that haunted him, everyday.

"Dog." Annie mumbled, reaching over to touch the scars on Cian's arm. "Bite." At this point Julia had a guilty, horrified expression on her face. 'Serves her right!' Diana thought, watching as Annie used the blue paint on her finger to paint a "flower" over Cian's scars.

"Thanks, Annie." Cian whispered, knowing that Annie had said as much as she could; Cian was well aware that Annie's speach was limited to "Parroting", and that saying what she had seemed to be difficult for her. Diana wished she could make people see how wonderful Cian was-make them see past the scars and his shy demeanor-but it seemed like Cian was okay with only Annie seeing the real Cian.

"I hate them!" Cian screamed, tears streaming down his face as he stood in the living room, securely holding the sleeve of his sweater in place when Mickey tried to help him apply the ointment he was supposed to use three times a day. The past year had been rough for their youngest child, and Mickey knew that; his arm would never look-and likely never work-the same way, again, he was becoming too scared to stay outside, and he didn't want anyone to see him without long sleeves. They had lucked out when Brad Dearing-and of fucking course the asshole's name was Brad-was ordered to pay Cian's medical bills, but nothing would really make Mickey and Ian feel lucky until they had their little Mouse back.

"I know you hate them, Key." Mickey sighed, looking up at Ian, silently pleading with him to hold Cian so they could apply his medication to his arm.

"People laugh at me! They say they're ugly, and they're right! I'm ugly!" Cian screamed, fighting against Ian's hold as the redhead sat in the floor, practically holding the child down as Mickey rubbed the sticky ointment into Cian's skin.

"Hey, look at me." Mickey ordered, forcing Cian to meet his eyes. "You're not ugly, Cian. Someday, no one is gonna give a shit about these scars. But those asshole kids? They're gonna be assholes, their whole lives."

"Dad's right, Key." Max said as he descended the stairs, sitting down across from Cian as his cries turned into soft whimpers. "Those make you brave; you got attacked, and do you remember what you said when you got home? You were worried that you did something wrong to that dog. You're a better person than those little brats could ever dream of."

"B-but... But t-they're u-ugly; J-Julia said s-so." Cian sniffled, pathetically.

"I've got scars, too. So does Dad, and Pop has some, too; everyone does, they don't change you." Max said, reaching out to take his brother's hand, tricking the child into doing one of his Physical Therapy exercises by having Cian squeeze it. "And you know what? I think they look badass." Cian laughed at that, turning his head to bury his face in Ian's arm.

Meanwhile, Harlow stood at the top of the stairs, already texting Arya about what was going on with Cian. She knew she had backup, so now she just had to wait.

"Hi, Julia!" Arya Gallagher said with a sickeningly sweet smile plastered on her face as she walked into the bathroom.

"Hi." Julia said, wondering why Arya-a _third grader-_ was talking to her.

"I heard you said something to my cousin, yesterday." Arya said, turning her head when she heard Harlow enter the bathroom.

"I don't talk to Harlow; she's poor and gross!" Julia sneered, earning an eye roll from Harlow.

"We're talking about my brother, dumbass!" Harlow exclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Harlow's nice enough to not hit you, but me? I will. So, stay. Away. From. Cian." Arya ordered, getting as close to Julia as she could. "Or next time you see me? It's gonna hurt." Julia nodded, frantically, looking to Harlow for help.

"Oh, don't look at me; I agree with her. You're gonna leave Cian alone, and you're not gonna say another word about his scars. And if you say something about us being here? Arya's gonna cut your ugly ass hair." With that, Harlow and Arya left the bathroom. They knew there was a chance Julia would tell the principal, but neither girl cared; Cian was the sweetest of all of the Gallagher cousins, and he didn't deserve Julia's shit because of some scars he can't help having.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, leave me lots of comments, because I love reading them! Much love!


	6. Growing Up and Guilt

_**One Year Later** _

It took several weeks to convince his parents, but Max was finally allowed to move his belongings to the basement so he no longer had to share a room with his younger brother. Max fucking adored Cian-he was convinced his little brother was the sweetest, cutest kid to ever live-but he was sixteen years old, and he wanted a little privacy. Sharing a room with his nine year old brother didn't give him that luxary, and their basement was divided into two rooms-the laundry room to the left, and a storage room to the right-so he offered to completely clean the storage room in order to turn it into his bedroom. "Why do you wanna move to the basement? It smells funny." Cian said, picking up one of Max's boxes-it was honestly adorable, because Cian was still so small-to help Max move.

"So does Max." Harlow commented, laughing her ass off when Max tossed a shoe at her.

"We don't all want to smell like a stripper, Harlow Rue!" Max called back, watching his eleven-year-old sister retreat Into her room.

"Stop sayin' your sister smells like a stripper." Mickey ordered as he and Ian walk back up the stairs after taking Max's new bed-Cian had asked to keep his old twin bed in his room, for some reason-to the basement.

"Not my fault she douses herself in "Very Vanilla Cupcake Sparkle" before she leaves the house." Max said, winking down at Cian as the youngest Gallagher child giggled.

"Just don't say it, brat. Those the last two boxes?" Mickey asked, looking into Cian's bedroom.

"Yep." Max replied with a bright smile and a nod.

"Okay. Then now we can tell you the fuckin' rules; Breelynn doesn't go down to the basement with you, you still gotta keep your room clean, and your skinny ass better be back in the house by eleven." Mickey said, knowing Max would think those were unfair terms; Ian had only been a year older than Max when Mickey got pregnant with the boy, but Mickey wanted better for their son.

"Okay." Max replied with a shrug, shocking both of his parents. "Don't look so surprised; Bree's parents were as young as Pop was when I was born when her oldest brother was born, and they tell us, all the time how hard it was. I'm not gonna do anything stupid."

"Good. You two go put those downstairs; dinner's gonna be ready in about fifteen minutes." Ian said, feeling a weight being lifted off his shoulders. Did he regret Max? Not for a fucking second. Did he wish he and Mickey had been a bit older when they had their son? Absolutely; he was an idiot teenager who caused himself to miss the first four years of his son's life, and Mickey was nineteen and alone during his pregnancy.

"How old was Papa when you were born?" Cian asked Max as they started walking down the stairs, together.

"We'll talk about that when you're older!" Ian called back, wishing his baby could have stayed a baby for just a little longer.

"Don't remember your ass smellin' like Vanilla, back in the day." Mickey commented, causing Ian to let out a surprised laugh.

"I had a _little_ self respect, asshole; what grown man wants to smell like a damn cupcake, all day?" Ian laughed, wrapping his arms around his husband's waist. "I still have a pair of the gold shorts."

"As obsessed as you are with my ass, I'm surprised you haven't asked me to wear 'em." Mickey joked, playing with the-slightly too long-hair at the base of Ian's neck.

"I'd love to see that; those legs and that ass in those little shorts? It'd be the hottest fuckin' thing." Ian purred against Mickey's lips.

"God, you two are gross! Why can't you be one of those old couples who don't even kiss, anymore?!" Harlow exclaimed, dramatically covering her eyes as she walked to the bathroom.

"I'm only thirty-seven!" Mickey shouted after their daughter.

"I'm only thirty-five!" Ian yelled at the same time.

"Like I said; old!" Harlow shouted through the bathroom door.

"I hate our daughter." Mickey grumbled.

"No you don't, you love that little demon child." Ian joked, dropping a kiss on Mickey's neck as his hands moved to the older man's ass.

"Why are you _always_ touchin' Dad's ass? He's got old guy butt." Harlow said as she walked back out of the bathroom.

"I hate the demon child." Ian said, turning his head to glare at his daughter. "Say it, again, and you're grounded."

"Not my fault Dad has old man butt!" Harlow laughed as she walked into her room, again.

"What the fuck did I just say?!" Ian demanded, causing Mickey to almost collapse in laughter. ""Old man butt" you've got a perfect ass."

"I'd rather my daughter think I have an old guy's ass than say I have a perfect ass, man." Mickey laughed, walking into Cian's bedroom to get his Physical Therapy "homework" to look over, seeing if there was anything he and Ian needed to do. "He hates this shit, so much... Kid asked if he could just quit, since he don't think it's helpin' his arm, but I told him we needed to keep tryin'."

"I was able to get a grip on him and push him away, when he bit me." Ian reminded his husband, subconsciously rubbing the small scar on his forearm from the attack. "I wish it would've been me; he's nine, and he's just now confident enough to wear a T-shirt, again."

"Don't do that to yourself, Ian." Mickey said, knowing Ian had felt guilty about that day since it happened; about it taking them a few seconds to get out the door-Ian having been in the bathroom taking his pills and Mickey having been upstairs, putting Harlow's clothes away-when Cian yelled, but neither man could have known what was about to happen to their son.

"If I was out there two seconds earlier, Cian would be fine." Ian said, rolling up his sleeve to show the small, almost invisible scar. "I got _this,_ and our son? He's gonna go through his entire life without his arm actually workin'!"

"You and Jake kept that thing from goin' after Key, again, Ian; you got him off the ground and told me to get him to the hospital while you got that dog off Jake. You did everything right. How the Hell were we supposed to know somethin' like that was gonna happen?" Mickey was trying to make Ian feel better, but he knew it was pointless; he knew neither of them would ever get over what had happened to Cian when he was supposed to be safe. He was in his own damn yard and something like that happened!

"I should've made the fuckin' appointment to get the fence fixed earlier-I thought it'd be fine, for two more days-I should've went to see what Cian needed as soon as he yelled instead of taking my Lithium before I left the bathroom, and I should've thrown that damn dog through the fuckin' fence." Ian seethed, going through every possible "what if" his mind could manifest; what if he had left the bathroom without taking his Lithium, what if he had been just a little faster, what if he'd scheduled the repairs on the fence for two days earlier... Everything he came up with always came back to it being his fault that Cian had been injured.

"If Harlow put her clothes away like we asked her to I would've been downstairs. Is it Harlow's fault?" Mickey countered, crossing his arms over his chest.

"No, of course it's not." Ian replied with an eye roll.

"And it's not your fault, either." Mickey reasoned, stepping around Ian to go back downstairs. "Yev's gonna be here in a few minutes!" Mickey called out, hoping he helped Ian see some reason in all of this, because-aside from the dog's owner-no one was to blame for what happened to Cian.

"Where are my Niece and Nephews?!" Yevgeny called out as he walked into the house, instantly having his arms filled by his nine-year-old nephew when the kid practically dove down the stairs to hug him. "Hey, Mousy!"

"Hey, Uncle Yev. Look!" Cian exclaimed, holding up his right hand to show that he could-finally-make a fist.

"That's awesome, bud!" Yevgeny gasped, looking at the small fist with so much joy you'd think he was the one who had went through all of the trouble his nephew had experienced. Yevgeny loved his niece and nephews-loved every moment he got to spend with his brother's children-but there was something different about Cian; Max was so close to his age he felt more like a little brother, and Harlow was almost like a crazy little sister, where Cian actually allowed him to feel like an Uncle.

"Max helps me do my homework so I can use my hand, someday." The hope in Cian's vibrant green eyes was almost heartbreaking; no kid should have to _hope_ they can regain use of their hand.

"He's doing pretty well with it, too." Max praised, stealing his brother away from their Uncle. "Kid works his little ass off, every day."

"Give me the baby." Harlow demanded, snatching Cian away. Despite what Mickey had believed when Cian was born, Cian was proving to be their smallest child; the boy still weighed only forty pounds, and was almost an inch shorter than Mikayla, despite being three years older.

"I'm not a _baby,_ Low!" Cian complained, though he secretly loved being so adored by everyone that his siblings would argue over who was going to hold him, instead of hugging their Uncle.

"Guys, say hi to Yev instead of fightin' over Key." Mickey sighed, moving to steal Cian away for himself, watching as his two eldest children hugged his little brother. "And you're still the baby, kid."

"But I'm nine." Cian argued.

"Do I have any kids younger than you?" Mickey asked, seeing Ian move to hug Yevgeny.

"No." Cian said, not at all bothered by being treated like the baby, because he knew no one _actually_ saw him as a baby.

"There we go; you're our baby. And your sister just wants to feel tall." Mickey joked, despite Harlow being on the taller side-standing at five foot-for her age.

"I'm the only one who _is_ tall; you messed those two up." Harlow joked, screeching when Yevgeny and Max decided to ruffle her hair. "Idiots! Do you know how long it takes to look this good?!"

"No idea. Ian? How long does it take you?" Mickey jokingly asked, throwing a playful wink in his husband's direction.

"Gross." Harlow muttered. "I don't look that much like Pop, either."

"Sorry, kid, but you got your Dad's eyes, and that's it." Ian said, looking between Mickey, Yevgeny, Max, and Cian before looking back at Harlow. "And you're the only one who does look like me."

"He's right. Don't matter, though; you're a cute kid." Yevgeny said, earning him another hug from his niece. Ian stepped back, allowing Mickey and his brother to talk while Max and Harlow resumed arguing-this time over who Cian's favorite was-with a little smirk.

"Looks nice, man." Yevgeny complemented, looking around at Max's new room. "Gonna miss sharin' a room with Key?"

"I mean, I'll miss being able to help him when he has nightmares about the dog attack, but I'm sixteen, so I think it was time." Max said, sitting back against the wall, his legs stretched out across his bed.

"You know, you guys are lucky; my only sibling is eighteen years older than me, so I didn't get this." Yevgeny commented, sitting down next to his nephew. "I wish I could be as close to Mick as you are to Harlow or Key."

"Harlow's a little annoying, sometimes-Dad and Pop won't say it, but I know they think it's just a little sister thing-but Key? Man, that kid's great." Max said, smiling at the picture of Hyde-who has, sadly, passed away five moths ago of old age-that Cian had drawn him, sitting in a frame on his nightstand. Cian was lucky he was left-handed, because he was a talented artist; the attack hadn't taken that away from him.

"Did Key draw that?" Yevgeny asked, looking at the incredibly detailed picture. "Shit, he's good."

"Yeah, Dad couldn't believe it when he sat down with Pop's phone and drew this from a picture of Me and Hyde when I was six." Max said, picking the frame up. "He gave it to me a few days after we lost Hyde; said he knew how much I loved Hyde."

"I wanted to come down when I heard but-" Max cut Yevgeny off by shaking his head.

"It's fine; I really wanted to be alone, after it happened. I had Hyde most of my life, and when he died it was... It was rough. Key's pretty good at giving people space, but he gave me that before he went to bed." Max said. He missed Hyde, but he knew that it was natural for animals to die, and he was glad Hyde had gone peacefully in his sleep, still curled up in his favorite spot on Max's bed, knowing he was loved.

"Hey, any reason Robbie just dropped this little rat off?" Mickey asked, walking into Max's room with a tiny, Norfolk Terrier puppy in his arms.

"Yev-" Max was actually tearing up when Yevgeny cut him off.

"Dad adopted two Norfolk's after he spent some time with Hyde, two years ago. He told me when they had a litter of puppies that he was saving one for you." Yevgeny said, watching as Mickey handed the puppy to Max. "She's a sweet little thing."

"Hey, little girl." Max sniffed, looking down at the puppy in his arms. She would never replace Hyde-no dog ever could-but Max missed having his little sidekick around, and the fact that Robbie and Yevgeny had planned to give him a puppy who looked similar-though not identical, due to the small, white spot on her face-to Hyde, really meant a lot to him.

"Does she have a name, yet?" Max asked, allowing the puppy to bury her face in his neck.

"No, we've just been calling her little girl." Yevgeny admitted, shyly.

"Lyla... Her name's Lyla." Max decided, kissing Lyla's little head as she fell asleep. Life was crazy and could break your heart, sometimes, but Max was a pretty lucky guy, all things considered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate myself, but I didn't want to actually write Hyde's death, even though I knew he'd have to go, at some point. I remember how heartbroken I was when I lost the dogs I'd had for fifteen and twenty years between late 2019 and early 2020, so I used Max to reflect how I felt. Leave me some comments. Much love.


	7. Thirty-Eight and Hot As Hell

** _One Year Later_ **

Age had never bothered Mickey; he wasn't particularly cocky about his appearance, but he knew for a fact that he still looked pretty good for being close to forty years old. That being said, the fact that today was his thirty-eighth birthday had the brunette man feeling old as fuck. "Morning, Dad!" Harlow exclaimed as Mickey sulked his way into the kitchen, already in a piss-poor mood because of the date on the Calendar. "Happy birthday! Pops, Max, and Key should be back in a few minutes."

"Where'd they go? It ain't even nine in the fuckin' mornin'." Mickey grumbled as he poured himself a cup of coffee, glad that Harlow was the one who made it; the girl liked her coffee as strong as Mickey did, and it made this awful fucking day seem like it might be a little more bearable.

"Mechanic called and said Max could pick up his car." Harlow replied, scooping Lyla up when the little fuzzball made her way into the kitchen, Mickey just nodding in response. Max worked a part-time job at some hipster fucking coffee shop, and it had earned him enough money to buy himself a car. Sadly, the thing was a fucking clunker, and he'd already spent more than he paid-which wouldn't be hard, anyway, since the red, 2000 Honda Civic had only cost him three hundred and fifty dollars since the original owner knew it was on it's last leg-on repairs.

"Needs to sell that fuckin' car and buy one that's gonna run for longer than a month at a fuckin' time; kid drives my car more than his own." Mickey sighed, loudly. He didn't mind Max driving his car-he knew his 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee was more reliable than Max's car could ever dream of-but he still needed it to get to and from work, himself, and Max would be leaving for College, next year, with a car that Mickey didn't even trust to make it across town.

"He loves that car, though." Harlow reminded Mickey, both well aware that Max was proud of his car, because he'd insisted on buying his own without his parents' help.

"Sadly." Mickey chuckled, enjoying having a few moments to spend with his little girl. The fact that Harlow turned twelve just two months ago was another reason Mickey suddenly felt so old; his eldest child was seventeen, his daughter was twelve, and his baby would be turning ten in just two weeks. All of his kids were growing up on him, and that meant they didn't need him, as much. He'd centered his whole life around being a father, and his kids were all grown up, now.

"The mechanic told him that after this it should run like a new car." Harlow commented, causing Mickey to realize something; she was acting far too calm and polite. Harlow had always been the wild card out of his three children, and today? She wasn't acting like herself.

"What's up with you? You're not callin' Max an asshole, you ain't runnin' around like a chicken with it's fuckin' head cut off, you made me coffee... What the Hell did you do, and how much is it gonna cost to fix it?" Mickey questioned, knowing something _had_ to be up if Harlow was being so nice.

"Figured I'd give you a break since you're an old man, now; wouldn't wanna give you a heart attack." Harlow joked, easily.

"First off, fuck you. Second, you've been callin' me an old man since you were eight." Mickey pointed out.

"Yeah, but now you're almost forty! That's fuckin' old, Dad." Harlow laughed, littering Lyla's face with kisses, leaving bright pink lip gloss all over her blonde fur.

"We're home!" Ian shouted as he walked into the house, scratching Jake and Penguin's heads as they met the other Gallaghers at the door. "Mornin', handsome." Ian murmured once he got into the kitchen, pressing a kiss to the side of Mickey's neck. "Your brother's gonna kill you when he sees his dog."

"I can't pick Jake up to cuddle with him." Harlow replied with a shrug. "And Lyla loves kisses!" She proved her point by kissing the dog, again, causing her stubby tail to wag, wildly. "Gonna go make sure Max don't ruin Key." Harlow said, setting Lyla down and dashing to the front door where Max and Cian were still standing, each preoccupied with one of the other dogs.

"What are you guys doin'? 'Cause I'm already in a shitty fuckin' mood." Mickey warned, letting out a contented sigh as Ian wrapped his arms around Mickey's waist.

"We took Max's car for a test drive-some guy offered him six fifty if it was runnin' good-then he sold it and picked up his new car. Figured it was a good birthday present; you fuckin' hated him drivin' the Civic." Ian said, softly. "Wanna go look at the new car?"

"Gotta be better than what he had." Mickey said, allowing Ian to lead him outside.

Turns out Max's new car was a black, 2004 Mazda 3. The car was actually pretty fucking nice-and the owner was selling it for five hundred dollars-so he still had some cash in his pocket that Ian added sixty dollars to for _his_ birthday present to Mickey; Max was getting the other kids out of the house for a few hours, so Mickey and Ian could have a some time alone. "Got me to yourself; now what?" Mickey asked as he watched Max pull out of the driveway with his brother and sister.

"I was thinkin' about fuckin' my _incredibly_ hot husband as hard and loud as we want." Ian whispered in Mickey's ear. "I know you're feelin' a little down on yourself 'cause you're thirty-eight, but you're as fuckin' gorgeous as you were when you were nineteen."

"I'm almost forty." Mickey said, trying not to gasp when Ian slipped his left hand under his shirt, the contrast between Ian's warm fingers and the cool metal of his wedding band causing goosebumps to break out across Mickey's skin.

"So? You're still hot, Mick; your body looks amazing, your hair's still completely black, and you only have those little lines around your eyes when I do somethin' real stupid that makes you laugh." Ian said as his breath fanned out against Mickey's neck.

"I'm gettin' old, man." Mickey replied, a soft moan escaping his lips as Ian began to nip and kiss at the side of his neck.

"Still hot as all Hell. Now get in our room, get naked, and let me show you how good you look." Ian ordered, knowing Mickey wasn't about to tell him "no" when they had a chance to get a little loud in bed. "Fuck, you look good." Ian rasped, watching Mickey strip out of his clothes at lightening speed. Mickey always had and-Ian expected-always would have an amazing body, and it left his mouth dry just looking at those perfect thighs and that beautiful ass.

"Then do somethin', tough guy." Mickey goaded, turning around to face Ian just in time to get tackled to the bed with Ian's lips on his. "That all you got?" Mickey panted when Ian pulled away long enough to get out of his own clothes. He knew Ian was going to make this good based on the look in his eyes, so the teasing was just riling him up, more.

"You're mouthy, today." Ian mused as he fetched their half empty bottle of lube out of the nightstand.

"And you're still not doin' anything. Want me to stop? Shut me up." Mickey was being manhandled to the end of the bed and moved onto his hands and knees facing Ian.

"Suck my cock; always shuts you up." Ian ordered, looking at his fingers as he lubed them up. The only immediate response Mickey got when he took Ian's cock into his mouth was a a slight catch in his breath. Mickey didn't care, though; he loved the feeling of his lips stretched to their limits around Ian's cock and the weight of it on his tongue.

"Shit." Ian gasped as Mickey continued to suck his cock. 'Finally!' Mickey thought, moaning around Ian's cock as Ian began to finger him open. Sure, he loved blowing Ian, but Mickey was hoping to get fucked before their kids came home. As Ian pumped his fingers in and out of Mickey, he pulled the brunette off of his cock with his free hand. "You gotta fuckin' stop or I'm gonna cum; I'm not twenty-one, anymore, baby."

"I'm good." Mickey keened, arching his back when Ian hit his prostate.

"Stand up." Ian ordered, removing his fingers and stepping back to give Mickey some room. "Bend over the bed." He ordered, watching Mickey, closely, as the brunette obeyed his orders. Fuck, did he look good; his ass was a work of fucking art, and Ian was the only one who got to see it in all it's glory. "God, you're fuckin' perfect." Ian groaned as he lubed his cock up, more than ready to sink into the tight heat of his husband's beautiful ass. 

"Yeah, yeah, that's it." Mickey panted, enjoying to stretch as Ian slowly slid into him. "Don't go slow; fuck me like you mean it." It didn't take any more prompting for Ian to start thrusting, his hips slamming into Mickey's ass with each forward movement. "Holy _fuck!"_ Mickey shouted, scrambling for purchase on the mattress as Ian asulted his prostate with his every movement.

Mickey had heard married couples complain about how their sex lives became boring after years of being together, but for them? It had only gotten better after years of exploring one another's bodies-learning each and every spot that turned the other into a whimpering mess-and time to figure out the perfect angles and amount of pressure needed to get one another off in spectacular fashion. "Don't fuckin' stop!" Mickey begged, knowing that-with Ian drilling into him so hard and fast-he'd be done for in a matter of minutes.

"You feel fuckin' perfect, baby." Ian panted in Mickey's ear. "Just keep gettin' better." Ian moaned, feeling Mickey tightening around him. "Keep that up and this is gonna be over real fuckin' quick." Ian warned, gripping Mickey's hips tighter.

"Close." Mickey panted, his vision beginning to blur as his orgasm crept closer. He was teetering on the edge, and knew he would be done for in no time, at all. "Fuck! Fuck, yes!" Mickey screamed, his voice becoming hoarse as Ian slammed forward one last time, finally releasing his orgasm and-with that-sending Mickey spiraling into his own.

"Feelin' better about your birthday?" Ian asked as he pulled out collapsed onto the bed beside Mickey.

"If you're still gonna fuck me like that? I'll be fuckin' fine with gettin' old." Mickey joked, turning his head to face Ian, lovinging running his fingers through Ian's hair.

"You're not old, and I'm gonna keep fuckin' you until my dick just completely stops workin'." Ian said, earning a soft laugh from Mickey.

"Guess gettin' old ain't so bad." Mickey mused.

"You just keep gettin' hotter." Ian murmured, leaning in to kiss his husband-the love of his fucking life-in a gentle, loving manner that contrasted so drastically with the brutal, intense sex they'd just had it almost made Ian's head spin. "And I love you more, every year."

"Cheesy fucker." Mickey laughed. "I love you, too. And thanks; for spendin' my birthday with me." Mickey said, feeling exhaustion setting in. He no longer felt bad about his age; Ian was still attracted to him and loved him, so what else could possibly matter?


	8. Adjusting To The New Normal

_**One Year Later** _

Max being gone was a struggle for Mickey; every day for the first eighteen years of his son's life he'd seen him, and now? Now he was lucky if he got a phone call, once a week. He knew-realistically-that most parents had a hard time when their children left home, but he hadn't expected it to hit him, this hard, when he still had two children under the same roof. "Dad? Penny's Mom's pickin' me up for dance class, in a few. I'll see you at seven." Harlow explained as she walked into the living room with her dance bag over her shoulder.

"Make sure you-"

"Text you when I get to class, when it's over, and when I leave the studio. I _know."_ Harlow said, cutting Mickey off as if she'd heard the same sentence a thousand times. "How are the ribs feelin'?" Mickey winced as soon as he was reminded of his injury, as if mentioning it made the pain worse; after an accident on a worksite, he'd been left with two broken ribs, being forced on almost complete bed rest by his husband to prevent aggravating the healing bones.

"Not too bad, today. You sure Penny's Mom don't mind drivin' you to class?" Though Jenna-the mother of Harlow's best friend, Penny-had told both Mickey and Ian she didn't mind helping Harlow out while Mickey was forbidden-by his doctor, not his husband, in this case-from driving, he still felt the need to ask, at least once a week.

"Jenna's cool about it; she said to remind you it's not outta her way and it's kinda nice havin' the company since Penny's constantly textin' Drew." Harlow said, rolling her eyes at the mention of Penny's boyfriend. Though she was out to her family and her two closest friends-Penny and a shy, quiet boy named Dean-Penny wasn't out at school, and thus hadn't started dating, just yet, and was rather jealous of her friend's being able to do so. That didn't really bother Mickey or Ian, though; they'd rather live in a fantasy world where she was still the little five-year-old girl making them throw tea parties and dancing around the living room.

"You know nobody's gonna give a shit that you're gay, right? Fuck, Dean's gay and no one at your school even batted a fuckin' eye, when he came out." Mickey reminded his daughter, hoping she would finally listen. Even if he didn't want her dating, just yet, he hated seeing her hide; it reminded him far too much of the years he'd spent trying to pretend he was straight.

"I know. I'm just not there, yet." Harlow replied with a slight nod. "Besides, none of the hot girls at my school are gay."

"Might be surprised. You think I knew your Pop was gay before we got together?" Mickey asked with a smirk. "You know we don't care, right?"

"You'd be fuckin' hypocrites if you did." Harlow joked, easily.

"Yeah. Yeah, we would. Have fun." Mickey said, wrapping his good arm-the one that wasn't fucking strapped down to prevent further injury-around his daughter and kissing her freckles forehead. "Love you, brat."

"Love you, too, old man." Harlow laughed before rushing out of the house.

"How are the rugrats doin'?" Sandy asked Mickey as she sat beside her cousin, the two of them passing a joint back and forth between them.

"Max called, yesterday; said his classes are goin' good and his roommate's pretty cool. Key's doctor wants us to think about another surgery for his arm, so he's pretty down in the dumps. And Harlow's just... Harlow." Mickey replied, trying not to laugh at how much Sandy reminded him of his daughter as she rolled her eyes at him.

"She's a cool ass chick, man; kid always keeps me laughin' my fuckin' ass off." Sandy mused. Over the past several years she'd gotten close to his kids, but everyone knew her favorite was his shit talking, sarcastic, hyperactive daughter.

"Still wish she didn't think she couldn't come out at school." Mickey said, passing the joint back to his cousin.

"You were... What? Eighteen when you came out? Give the kid some time; she'll get there." Sandy offered, knowing that seeing his daughter so stressed out over keeping her sexuality hidden was hard on Mickey. "And once she does you'll be losin' your mind over how many girls she's got after her ass."

"Shut the fuck up." Mickey groaned, trying not to think about his daughter dating.

"I mean it! She's cute, she's funny, she's a little badass... You and Ian are gonna have your hands full when she starts datin'." Sandy laughed, seeing how much this was bothering Mickey.

"I fuckin' hate you." Mickey mumbled, wishing the rest of his family would get home so he had someone aside from Sandy to talk to.

"I bet you fifty bucks she asks you out, before our next class." Penny said as she walked into the Gallagher's house with Harlow, only stopping when she spotted Mickey and Ian in the kitchen. "Hi, Mickey, hi, Ian!" Penny chirped, watching Harlow as she dropped her dance bag at the foot of the steps.

"First off, you have no idea if she's gay or not. Second, _she_ doesn't know that _I'm_ gay." Harlow replied, scratching Jake's head as she walked towards the kitchen.

"Ian, there's a new girl in our class and she keeps starin' at Harlow and offered to lift her during a run through of our chorography for the recital, next week. She's into 'Low, right?!" Penny wasn't really asking, but she had always enjoyed watching any of the Gallagher's squirm.

"How would I know? I'm not there." Ian replied, trying not to give Penny the satisfaction of seeing him get uncomfortable. "She cute?" He asked his daughter, causing the girl to choke on her water.

"Very; big brown eyes, cute smile, and her face looks like a damn pixie!" Penny chimed in.

"Shut up." Harlow ordered, plopping down in the chair beside Mickey. "Yeah, Carys is pretty, but Penny thinks any girl who talks to me wants to fuck me."

"Hey!" Mickey shouted.

"Don't say shit like that!" Ian exclaimed at the same time, trying to hold onto his baby girl being innocent for a little while longer.

"Lilli Norman's been into you since fifth grade, and everyone but you knows it." Penny stated, rolling her big, amber eyes at her best friend.

"I know it, but Lilli's annoying as fuck and I'm not interested." Harlow said with a shrug.

"Okay, you girls go upstairs, I'll call you down when dinner's ready." Ian ordered, watching his daughter and the petite blonde at her side rush towards the stairs. "And leave your brother alone, for once!" He reminded, knowing the two girls still saw Cian as a baby and always ended up spending hours talking about how adorable the youngest Gallagher child was.

"She's gonna send me to an early grave; can't she just stay a kid for a little while?" Ian asked as he moved around the kitchen, noting how quiet Mickey was being. "What's up?"

"Sometimes I forget she ain't six and followin' me around the house, anymore." Mickey sighed, wishing he could just go back to those days.

"I do, too. But, hey, Key's still got a few years before he starts thinkin' about all that shit." Ian offered.

"Only thing that keeps me from losin' my damn mind." Mickey joked, watching Ian's every move. He knew his kids were growing up-and that is was normal-but knowing that Ian had a hard time with it, too, made him feel just a little better.


	9. Home For The Holidays

_**One Year Later** _

"Okay, Max and Franny are gonna get here around four, your brother just called-" Debbie was rattling off information to Mickey as he helped Cian change the bandages on his arm after he finally agreed to go through the second round of surgery to regain some use of the limb.

"Which one?" Mickey asked, cutting Debbie off as he secured the gauze he'd been wrapping around his son's injured arm.

"Yev. Anyway, he said he'll be here around six. So, everyone's gonna be in the house and ready for dinner by six-thirty." Debbie said, quickly checking her phone before she went back to the kitchen to help Harlow with dessert.

"How's your arm feelin', Mouse?" Mickey asked, hoping some of the pain had warn down since the last time Cian had taken his medication.

"Not too bad. It hurt worse, earlier." Cian replied, the twelve year old's eyes locked on the small section of skin left uncovered.

"Good. Maybe your skinny ass will make it through dinner, tonight." Mickey joked, though he hoped it was true; Cian had been in so much pain from his most recent surgery that he'd wanted to do absolutely nothing but sleep, which meant Mickey and Ian had to constantly remind him of how sick he'd gotten when he took his medication without eating, just so he _would_ eat.

"Pop didn't make the turkey, right?" Cian questioned, causing Mickey to let out a surprised fit of laughter. Ian's culinary skills had improved, a lot, over the years he'd been a parent, but anytime he tried to cook a Turkey for a holiday it was-admittedly-disgusting.

"No, I did it." Mickey finally answered between laughs.

"Then I'll eat." Cian decided.

"Okay, get dressed, kiddo. I gotta go finish dinner." Mickey ordered as he stood up, patting Cian's left shoulder as he left the room.

"Uncle Ian! Uncle Mickey!" Franny shouted as she walked into the house in front of her cousin and Breelynn, rushing to hug both men. "I missed you guys, so much!"

"Missed you too, Fran." Ian said, taking a good look at his niece. The girl had grown into a beautiful young woman-which made sense, considering she looked exactly like Debbie-and Ian sometimes needed a moment to accept that he was looking at his niece instead of his little sister. "Max, you gonna come say "hi" to your parents?"

"Hey, Pop, hey, Dad." Max laughed, quickly moving to hug both of his fathers as soon as Franny stepped away. "I see you haven't burned the house down, yet." Max joked, adjusting his glasses as Breelynn joined the small cluster of Gallaghers.

"Hi, Ian." Breelynn said, pulling Ian into a tight hug. "Shit, I missed you."

"Missed you, too, Bree." Ian replied. He'd known her most of her life, and-at this point-she was basically his second daughter. "How's school?"

"Good; I'm on track to get into the nursing program, early, actually." Breelynn proudly stated as she moved on to Mickey. "How's my favorite Gallagher doin'?" Breelynn asked, hugging Mickey tighter than she had Ian. Breelynn had always loved Mickey-saying his "non-filtered thoughts" were refreshing-and would cling to him whenever she was around.

"Better without all of you loud ass kids runnin' around my house." Mickey replied with a smirk. "Keepin' him in line for me?"

"Always! You know I'm not gonna disappoint you, Dad." The girl joked, moving one of her beautiful, springy curls of hair away from her face. "So, I heard we're finally gonna meet 'Low's girlfriend!"

"Yeah, she's stoppin' by, later." Mickey said, still feeling rather nervous about meeting his daughter's first girlfriend with the entire Gallagher family around.

"Oh! I bet she's cute as shit; she's gotta be for 'Low to date her, right?" Breelynn asked, excitedly.

"Bree, babe, calm down or you'll scare the kid off as soon as she walks in." Max said, trying not to laugh at how happy his girlfriend was to see who his younger sister was dating. "Hey, Dad, do you need any help finishing dinner?" That comment brought Mickey right back to Max being a child, wanting nothing more than to help his parents in the kitchen.

"Yeah, kid. Come on." Mickey said, leading his son farther into the house.

Thanksgiving dinner was the usual loud, chaotic Gallagher family gathering, everyone talking over each other and laughing at Ian and Carl doing something stupid. Mickey caught Max occasionally whispering to Breelynn out of the corner or his eye, trying not to let him know he could see this sweet, gentle side to his adult son. "Hey, when's your girlfriend gonna be here?" Sandy asked Harlow around a mouthful of food.

"She's coming over for dessert. _Please_ don't talk with your mouth full around Carys; her family are a bunch of rich, snobby fuckers." Harlow begged, not wanting her girlfriend to decide that-because of her family's horrid table manners-Harlow wasn't good enough for her.

"We're not gonna embarrass you, 'Low." Ian said, glaring at everyone else sitting at the table to ensure they understood that was an order.

"Your Pop's right, Buggy; we're not gonna do anything to embarrass you in front of Carys." Fiona chimed in, tossing a small piece of her dinner roll at Mickey.

"What are you, twelve?" Mickey questioned, laughing at his best friend as she tossed another piece at him.

"Oh my God, this is gonna be a disaster." Harlow groaned, laying her head on the table.

"Get your head off my table. And we know how to fuckin' behave; we aren't animals." Mickey said, which was counteracted by Max and Cian both stuffing their cheeks with food and turning to face one another. "Those two are, but we'll lock 'em in the basement." Mickey stated, rolling his eyes at his sons.

"You called him "Chipmunk" when he was a kid, what do you expect?" Mandy asked, earning a laugh from her ten year old daughter, who had ended up looking like Mandy with Lip's curly blonde locks.

"You called Max "Chipmunk," Uncle Mickey?" Mikayla asked through giggles.

"Forgot Kay's never heard that!" Lip exclaimed. "He called Max "Chipmunk" and Harlow "Ladybug" when they were little." Lip informed his daughter.

"Oh! _That's_ why Auntie Fi calls 'Low "Buggy" all the time!" Mikayla nearly shouted, causing Max and Harlow to blush.

"They still call Cian "Mouse", so why are you surprised?" Arya asked, playfully elbowing Cian. Arya-much like Harlow-was rough around the edges, but was generally a pretty loving kid.

"Okay! Let's change the subject, please!" Harlow chimed in, loudly, trying to avoid talking about her childhood nickname, any further.

Around eight o'clock Max answered a knock on the door, seeing a cute girl with beautiful, honey colored skin, dark curls, and a tiny frame. "You must be Carys." Max greeted, allowing the petite girl into the house.

"Yeah. Max, right? Harlow's shown me pictures of all of you." Carys replied a sweet smile.

"Yeah. Harlow's just outside feeding the dogs." Max informed Carys.

"Oh! And this Key! You're even cuter in person!" Carys exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hands as she looked down at the youngest of the siblings sitting on the floor with Mikayla leaning against his side.

"Thank you." Cian said, shyly. "You're pretty; I see why Harlow likes you." And that was all it took for Cian to become Carys Lyons' second favorite Gallagher.

"Cary! Hey. Sorry, I was-" Harlow rambled until Carys cut her off.

"Feeding the dogs. Max told me. Sorry, I'm Carys Lyons. And..." Carys looked around at the group of people piled into the living room. "You're Mickey," She pointed to Mickey. "You're Ian." Again, she was correct. "You're Mandy," Right again. "Lip, Carl, Debbie, Franny, Sandy, Arya, Mikayla, and Breelynn." She was right, each and every time. "I have a good memory." Carys said, shyly.

"It's really nice to finally meet you, Carys. We're gettin' ready to have some of the of the Pumpkin ice cream Harlow made." Ian said, offering Carys a hand and a kind smile. In that moment, Harlow knew her family would love her girlfriend, and that made her feel so much better.


	10. Look How We've Grown

_**Ten Years Later** _

Twenty-Nine, Twenty-Five, and Twenty-two; those are the ages of Ian's babies, right now. His children had grown up, moved out, started their own lives, and he felt fucking _old._ He was only forty-six years old, he felt like he was an old man, and it had him feeling pretty down on himself. "Hey, Key's flight takes off in a few minutes, so he'll be here in about two hours." Mickey said, looking into the open bathroom at his husband as Ian stared at his reflection. "I thought I was the one who was supposed to stare at your pretty boy ass."

"Maybe twenty years ago." Ian replied, wincing when he noticed the wrinkles that seemed to have formed around his mouth and eyes overnight.

"Nah, you still look pretty." Mickey chimed in, tilting his head to the side as he observed his husband. "Feelin' old?"

"I'm forty-six." Ian answered as if it was an obvious answer.

"So? I'm forty-eight. Do you think I'm old?" Mickey's question probably would have been a trap coming from anyone else, but Mickey wasn't too concerned about how he looked.

"No, but you also look younger than I do." Ian pointed out, turning to face Mickey. "You're agin' a lot fuckin' better than I am."

"Bullshit." Mickey said with a snort. "You're fuckin' hot, man, you're just not in your twenties, anymore." Mickey moved closer to Ian, wrapping his arms around his waist. "We just look like we grew up."

"Sorta had to; we have three adult children." That sentence was sad; they're babies? They were no longer babies. They had done their job, and were now just watching as they lived their own lives.

"They're gonna be here, soon. Get dressed; even if I like you walkin' around naked, the kids are probably gonna flip shit." Mickey joked, actually causing Ian to crack a smile before Mickey walked out of the bathroom.

"Holy _shit_ it's cold! I don't miss Illinois winters!" Harlow shouted as she walked into the house, kicking snow off her boots as she rushed to close the door. "Where are the dogs?" Harlow asked, hugging Ian as soon as she spotted her father in the doorway of the Den, turning on the lights to the Christmas tree.

"Polly's upstairs with your Dad and Lyla's outside with Duke." Ian informed his daughter, watching as she moved to put presents under the tree. Duke-a beautiful Golden Retriever/German Shepherd mix-had joined the family three years earlier after Jake passed away and Polly-a Beagle/Fox Terrier mix-came to them a year later when they lost Penguin. While-like Lyla couldn't replace Hyde-Polly and Duke didn't replace Jake and Penguin, they loved the two dogs and enjoyed having them around.

"Polly still follows Dad around? I thought she'd get over it." Harlow mused, laughing when Polly ran into the room and started licking Harlow's face. "Hi, Polly Pocket!"

"Don't call my fuckin' dog _"Polly Pocket",_ brat." Mickey joked, quickly letting Duke and Lyla in the house before he moved to greet his daughter. "How's winter in California treatin' your Vampire ass?"

"I miss it, already." Harlow sighed. "Maggie said to tell you Merry Christmas and that she'll try to make it here for New Years Eve." Harlow said, paying more attention to Duke, Lyla, and Polly than her parents. Maggie was nice enough, but Mickey and Ian hadn't been as crazy about any of Harlow's girlfriends as they had Carys; for the four years they dated Carys had been sweet, fun to be around, and just generally a delight. And since their breakup, Harlow had dated a series of girls who were nowhere near as wonderful as her first-and longest lasting-girlfriend.

"Can't wait. Go put your stuff in your room and we'll talk until Dinner's done." Mickey said, kissing Harlow's forehead before he walked into the kitchen.

"I'll help you carry this stuff upstairs." Ian offered, picking up one of Harlow's bags and following her up the stairs.

"The best of the Gallagher's have finally arrived!" Max exclaimed, marching into the house with his arm thrown over Cian's shoulders. "Let's celebrate!"

"Where's that wife of yours?" Mickey asked, moving to hug his sons.

"She stopped to see her Dad before she pops over; wanted him to see the newest Ultrasound pictures." Max explained, happily passing his own father the latest picture of his unborn child. "She's growin' like a weed."

"Can't believe I'm gonna be a Grandpa, this time, next year." Mickey mumbled, smiling softly at his Granddaughter. "Hey, Gallagher! Wanna come see our Granddaughter?" Ian needed nothing else to rush out of the Den, snatching the picture out of Mickey's hand before the brunette could blink.

"Holy shit. She's definitely gonna be bigger than any of you were." Ian mumbled, smiling through the tears as he looked at his first grandchild.

"Can't believe I'm gonna be an Uncle... Seems like you two just got married, yesterday." Cian said as the picture was finally passed off to him.

"Sometimes it feels like that to me, too." Max said with a fond expression on his face. "hey, little sister! You wanna see what your niece looks like?" Max asked Harlow, happily.

"Obviously! We need more women in the Gallagher family." Harlow chirped, as oblivious to her parents walking away from the cluster of siblings as both of her brothers were.

"We're gonna have a granddaughter in two months." Ian breathed as he hugged his husband.

"I think it's crazier that Cian's almost done with College and Harlow's going back to get a master's." Mickey replied, lightly. Max was now working as a Special Needs teacher, Harlow was a Social Worker and was in the process of going back to school to become a child Psychologist, and Cian was studying to become an Architect. Their children were all well adjusted adults, and Mickey? He couldn't be happier.

"They grew up, a lot." Ian mused.

"So have we." Mickey replied, turning to kiss Ian right as Breelynn walked into the house, quickly moving to kiss her own husband. Life was good, and Mickey had come so far from where he was when Max was four, jump starting the series of events that lead him back to Ian. He wouldn't have in any other way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, this series is officially at it's end! I loved writing this, and I'm so thankful for everyone who stuck around. Leave me some comments to let me know how you feel about the ending. Stay safe and much love!


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